1)Your not sure where your at 2)You have little chance of improving to beat the hand your opponent might already have or might make. 3)A call commits you to calling future bets all the way to the end. 4)Your opponent can back off at any time.

Explain implied odds using all-ins

When you getting implied odds, your glad your not all-in because you expect to make mony on future bets if your card hits. When your getting reverse implied odds, you wish you were all in so that you could see the hand to the end without calling more bets.

Deception and the ability of your opponents

The tougher they are, the more you must consider playing a hand other than optimally to throw them off. The weaker they are, the more you must play optimally.

Deception and the size of the pot

As the pot grows larger, it becomes less and less important to disguise your hand, because people are less likely to fold and less likely to bluff when you show weakness.

Deception and bet size

consider not only the amount in the pot now, but also how much they are now compared to what they may be later. You might check a big hand early to win big bets later, and on the other hand you might bet with a weaker hand early in hopes they will check later to give you a free card.

Deception and the number of opponents in the pot

The more players in the pot, the less you gain by disguising your hand. You cost yourself too much when you do. You wont be able to make anyone fold with a weaker hand and you cost yourself too many bets when you miss a raise with a bigger hand.

5 criteria for using deception to avoid giving your hand away

1. You are up against good players or super readers. 2)The pot is small in comparison to future bets 3)The present round of betting is small in comparison to future bets. 4)Only one or two opponents 5)You are slowplaying a monster. The first two are most significant. Three of five are sufficient as long as one of the first two is included.

You suspect you have the best hand, but you know you will be called only if you are beaten. Factors to consider when deciding when to bet are

1.Chance of having the best hand. 2) The chances the next card will give your opponent the best hand when he would have folded had you bet. 3)The size of the pot. 4)The chances you will outdraw a better hand that might call you.

Advantages of the semi-bluff

1)It tends to make your opponent play incorrectly according to the fundamental theorem. 2)If you are ahead, you are not giving free cards. 3)Adds deception to your game: a card that appears to make you hand but doesn’t might make them fold 4)When you hit a card that makes your hand, your opponent might misread it and pay you off. 5)You can use it to get a free card.

Defending vs the semi-bluff

Raise or fold, the three criteria to use when deciding are: 1)The chances your opponent is semi-bluffing or bluffing 2)The chances they will outdraw you if they have the worst hand 3)The chances you will outdraw them if they are betting the best hand.

3 situation where calling vs a semi-bluff is correct

1)The pot is large. 2)You think your opponent has a lot of outs, in which case he would call a raise anyway, so you intend to bet out on a brick next round. 3)delayed semi-bluff raise- raise a blank turn card instead of the flop vs a tougher opponent

7 reasons for raising

1)get more $ in pot when ahead 2)Drive out opponents when ahead 3)bluff or semibluff 4)get a free card 5)gain info 6)drive out worse hands when you are second best to clean up outs 7)drive out better hands when a come hand bets

loose games

in a loose game: tighten up on your bluffs and semi-bluffs, but loosen up on your legitimate hands. Bluff less, bet for value more. Call with more hands and play more drawing hands

tight games

In a tight game: loosen up your bluffs and semi-bluffs, but tighten up on your legitimate hand requirements. Bluff more, bet for value less. Call less and give up on drawing hands more quickly

mathematically optimal bluffing strategy

bluff in such a way as the chances against your bluffing are identical to the pot odds your opponent is getting. Ie pot is 6-1, chance against your bluffing is 6-1. This can be adjusted for the tightness/looseness of your opponent.

bluffing by street

tend towards semi-bluffs on early rounds, last round can only be pure bluffs.

Stopping/inducing bluffs

induce bluffs vs players who bluff too much by showing weakness, ie slowplaying, on an earlier round and stop bluff vs players who bluff too little by showing strength, ie semi-bluffing, on an earlier round. When you induce a bluff you must call a bet and if you stop a bluff you must fold to a bet.

Calling on the basis of what your opponent thinks

When an opponent bets in a situation where he is sure you are going to call, he is not bluffing. This extends to the principle of stopping and inducing bluffs, you must call after inducing a bluff because he thinks your hand is weaker than it is and vice versa with inducing bluffs.

Betting on the basis of what your opponent thinks

if you know you opponent suspects you have a strong hand, tend to bluff more with a weak hand because the chances are good he might fold, but do not bet a fair hand for value, since he will only call with hands that beat you. If you know he suspects you are weak, do not try to bluff since you’ll get caught, but bet your fair hands for value because he will pay you off.

4 steps of poker situational analysis

1)What is his range of hands 2)What are the chances of each possible hand 3)what is the best play against each holding 4)Pick the play that is most often correct, but think about the costs of a mistake

if opponent bluffs too much

induce a call

if opponent bluffs too little

stop a bluff, then fold if you cannot beat a hand(unless your not getting odds)

if opponent never folds a fair hand on the end

never bluff, but be sure to come out betting with a decent hand.

if opponent rarely folds a fair hand on any round

don’t slowplay. Bet decent hands for value.

if opponent folds too much on the end

bluff more but bet fair hands for value less.

if opponent okays very tight on first round, but then wont fold

try to steal antes no matter what. If he calls, give up on a bluff, but play a fair hand for one card, if you improve, he wont fold.

if opponent never check-raises

bet many more hands behind him than you would behind someone who check-raises.

if opponent never bluff raises

fold fair-to-good hands when he raises. Bet weaker hands than normal into him since his response will tell you if you are ahead.

if opponent never slowplays

if you are first and have little, check to see what he does, if he checks, bluff the next round.

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